Things unsaid - A beautiful Sjips tale
by escapo
Summary: With Sjin gone at the farm, Sips is starting to fall apart. Without each other, how will they say what went unsaid?
1. Chapter 1 - Gone

_Silence_. The grass whispers my name. It's just another thing to haunt me, I've decided. An occasional owl hoots in the distance; the wind whistles a melancholy tune. The night is soundless and motionless otherwise.

I take an uneasy glance again to familiarize myself with a place that should be closest to my heart, and I wonder why it's always times like this that my memory slips away from me. Averting my gaze back to the silky still water of the pool that i now find my self sitting on the edge of, my legs swing back and forth in the ice cold water. It doesn't make a sound. My bare legs are pricked with pain from the sheer frozen feeling, and it only gets worse as it spreads up to my torso.

But at the same time, I don't feel anything.

From the corners of my vision, I see darkness. It starts to swallow me, engulfing my vision in pitch black. Darkness. I know this feeling; it's familiar.

I am now standing on soft, grainy sand, looking at the water. But this time, the water is vast. It laps my feet in small, hungry, waves. I see a boat in the far distance, and it gets smaller as it travels away. Away from me.

_It's your fault._

A voice whispers, so far away, and I immediately recognize it with a bitter feeling.

_I couldn't stand you anymore._

My fingers stab into curled fists with growing anger, and I turn away from the boat; it's far out of sight now.

_You drove me away._

I look dully to the ground, my teeth clenching. The voice is closer.

_I left for a reason._

My eyes squeeze shut. "Stop," I feel like shouting, but it comes out as a broken whisper.

I feel soft, taunting breath on my neck. _I'm never coming back._

It's louder this time. "Stop it."

And suddenly, as if I'd said too much, the thought chases me. Darkness consumes me. I'm running, and I'm not even sure why. Any thoughts that previously pursued me shatter and leave a trail of broken glass behind me as I try to run from a fractured reality.

As I'm running, I feel a splinter stab the ball of my foot. _It's Mahogany, _the random awareness punctures like aching realization before i trip over the splintering pain.

And, just as the ground flies towards me like a camera with broken zoom, I'm gone.

Alone.

Darkness.

And although I can't see, or hear, or feel; I sense _him._

His blue eyes that melt me. Chestnut hair that suits a beard a little too beautifully. A smile that can't be duplicated, not for the largest amount of red matter in the Universe. Dusty, dirty clothes that are only identifiable by a small square sloppily painted with orange. A faint scent of newly refurbished mahogany. He is here. So close, that I could reach out from where I am, and touch his face. Hold him.

But he's far gone. There is nothing I can do to bring him back. Not a whisper, nor a shout.

So I am alone. Again.

In the darkness, I suffocate. The air leaks from my lungs, but I make no sound.

And I right as I'm about to die, I feel his presence, and his fractured name falls in segments from my tear stained lips.

"Sjin...?"


	2. Chapter 2 - Quest

Chapter 2

Sips awoke with a sudden start. He looked around alarmingly, gasping for air as he struggled to comprehend where he was. Ghostly white knuckles gripped a soft comforter unnaturally while knees levitated slowly to his chest. He wrapped his arms weakly around them as the realization hit him; that it was only a dream. Alone, and in darkness, he wondered if he was still conscious.

_It was a dream._

Without thinking, Sips glanced to his left with a hopeful thought, but was quickly proved wrong as the vacant spot by his side was felt thoroughly by restless hands.

Then he felt something. He brought a cautious hand to his face, and found tears continually rolling down his face in well-made paths. They bubbled in his eyes, sparkling in a darkness that proved to Sips that he truly was alone. A sigh left his lips as he rubbed his tearing eyes wearily.

"Shouldn't have expected any different," He mumbled. With a glance outside the foggy window next to his bed, Sips sighed as the moon sunk lazily into the horizon. "No point in going back to sleep…" He figured and stretched after rubbing his eyes once more.

Sips wasn't sure how he had managed to keep on keeping on. With the passing days since Sjin had left the farm, it was painful at best. Everything in the compound had reminded him of the peppy bearded boy. In every Mahogany Door, the Tower of Power- Tower Power- or the Power Tower Flower, whatever he had called it.

And, as it seemed every morning after one of these suspecting nightmares Sips came witness to, he sat still thinking over these things. Alone in the dark bedroom, arms wrapped around his knees, thinking about anything other than something productive.

Soon enough, dim sunlight peered through decaying curtains as pale light painted the dull gray walls of the pent house floor. Old picture frames paintings, and unfinished blueprint plans lie scattered across these walls, and articles of clothes littered the floor. There wasn't a huge use in picking up, Sips figured, seeing as he wasn't sharing the room with anyone else anymore.

With a large groan that tore through the eerie silence of dawn, Sips stretched and rose to his feet. He could hear the now - alerted zombies and skeletons on the ground below, decaying from the sun's harsh rays.

_Only a week left until Sjin's birthday._ It was the only thing Sips had really focused on for the past month or two, trying to find the perfect present while hinting at the fact that he needed Sjin to come back to the compound. Without seeming too desperate.

So, in a lame cliché act that he decided all friends should do for eachother, Sips decided to start a homemade project for him. Nothing too elaborate, but not too lame. It was a simple heart shaped mahogany wood door hanger that would eventually have the words "Sips co.'s finest birthday present" carved into the center. Eventually. Right now, Sips was having a hard time trying to make the overall shape of the thing. God, how was the joker so good at this stuff? Sips could barely draw an even looking heart, non the less being able to carve one. And then here's this big jaberoni, building the whole compound without breaking as much as a single sweat. Not one whole sweat! Jeeez. What a Joker.

Sips passed by the lopsided thing as it sat atop a dusty counter- the more he looked at it, the more he thought it wouldn't get any better. And it didn't. Sips figured that if he spent too much time working on its shape, the inside would never get carved.

And so, with unrelenting stress sitting nonchalantly on sips' shoulders, he managed to finish the project with a day to spare.

Sips knew how far the farm was from the compound, and seeing as he had only a day left until the big day, he would get a head start on traveling. He quickly mustered about a quarter stack of steak, carefully placed the wooden gift in his pack, and set off across the vast lake he'd drowned in so many times in his nightmares.

It was far. Really far. The sun had said goodbye and hello already. It was like The Beatles were haunting him. Just like that one movie with that guy. The guy that sang about Hellos and goodbyes and then got swallowed by a giant squid _whole_ as his pet dog turned into some purple dinosaur that sang songs. Sips was _that guy_.

But, lame movies references aside, the farm was finally coming into view.

The traditional looking farm house was no doubt the trade mark picture of Sjin's architecture, and the beautifully landscaped farm sporadically decorated around it was a little too familiar. Sips knew that it was finally time to confront the voice that had whispered lies and false guilt to him.

Sips could hear noises coming from behind the house, and find his way on a cheesy stone path that lay littered around in... a rather cute way. He step by step traced the stone path that lead round the stone bricks and polished wood.

Sips felt his hands sweat and shake with nervous anticipation, the wooden gift wrapped a little too tightly in his hands. He had a vague idea where all of his sudden anxiety came from, what with a carefree spirit mere seconds ago. With a shaky sigh and mustered up cocky grin, Sips stumbled forward into sight of the huge farm that his best friend had spent all of this time working on.

His eyes moved from the dusted grassy floor to the figure that he had been waiting to see for months.

The present loosened in his ghostly white hands as his eyes settled to Sjin.

**Author's Note: Hey there all you Sjippers, I'm obviously new here at fanfictiontopia. I'll be trying to post new chapters as soon as possible, but until then enjoy!**


	3. Chapter 3 - The Day

A soft yawn met Sjin lips as the sound filled the semi-silence of fresh dawn. The birds chirped cheerily outside the bedside window, and Charlotte slept restfully at his feet. She stirred with a stifled 'mew' as he sat up and rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Morning, Charlotte," Sjin hummed sweetly, and reached to give her a rub behind the ear. She happily scampered off the bed, presumably to wait for breakfast. A giggle left his lips as he swung his feet over the side of the bed and glanced out the window. The sun rested lazily on the horizon, readied and waiting for a brand new day.

Such a day, Sjin realized with a bubbling giddiness, should be celebrating by taking the day off! No dealing with the machinery and bees; stress and trees, just… relaxing. And, as he gratefully basked in this satisfying realization, he sat back in bed; the covers wrapped around him, and enjoyed the sunrise in the first few moments of his birthday.

It had to have been at least a half hour or so of peacefully swimming in his own thoughts before he felt something nudge his feet- Charlotte - awaiting her breakfast, probably. Sjin smiled down at her and removed the covers from the bed for a second time that morning. He got up and out of bed with a long and well needed stretch. Sauntering downstairs in an almost dreamlike state, he fed both pets and wandered back up to the bedroom to put on some actual clothes and get ready for this hopefully uneventful day.

It didn't take that long for Sjin to slip on his denim-dungarees and run a comb through his surprisingly cooperative hair (for once), so he gave his reflection a quick grin in the mirror and strolled out the front door. The mahogany doors. Mahogany Doors.

As soon as he took a step out the door, Sjin was greeted with lots of small packages, letters, and bundles of flowers littered at his feet. A wide grin lit up his bearded face, happiness bubbling up inside. He closed the door gingerly behind him and sat down on the door step – what other way could there have been to enjoy the small gifts than outside?

And, now that he truly appreciated it, the day _was_ gorgeous. The sun shone timidly but respectfully; not too blisteringly hot, but not too cool. The wind blew teasingly at his face, and the scene of his farm looked almost too picturesque to be true. There wasn't a single cloud that penetrated the sky's perfect shade of blue. Various crops and trees danced and swatted at each other in the wind, and the entirety of the view was outstanding.

After snapping out of his appreciative daze, Sjin looked back down at the small gathering of gifts surrounding his bare feet. His eyes scanned lightly over all of them – not that there were too many, and if there was an estimate, there were approximately ten in all. A couple cards from 'Dew and Lalna, a standardly sized wrapped gift from Xeph, More cards from Lomadia and Nilesy, nothing from Nano (which was a bit odd, considered they'd been living next to each other (and still did) for how long?), and…– Something from Rythian? That was probably a trap or the equivalent of a booby prize, he assumed with a bittersweet grin.

Sjin took a double take and checked between and under everything he had received, but slowly his wide grin dropped to a confused frown as stunning blue eyes fluttered almost frantically around the small pile of 'loot'. There… was nothing from Sips. He paused for a moment, retrieving his restless hands helplessly to his side.

He decided to brush the thought away with the shake of his head. It wasn't that big of deal – Sips was probably busy working around the Sips co compound. Speaking of, it was another thing that Sjin hadn't really thought about lately…

Well, He'd never been that good at lying anyway. To be honest, Sips had been on his mind constantly ever since he'd left. It'd been almost a year since Sjin left the compound for the farm life, and he didn't think his time at the farm could've been replaced so easily, but… he missed him. Sjin missed him more than he thought he'd ever missed anything in his life, and there had no explanation for it.

Sjin let his mind wander once more as he gazed up at the first sight of a small cloud that morning - it didn't stay for long. In his recent thoughts about the old CEO, he embarrassedly sorted those thoughts into, as Sips would probably put it, the 'you're a dumdum' file. These included things such as worrying about if he would've been better off staying there, if there was something he should have _said_, if Sips was glad that he was gone, if Sips even missed him at all…

_But that's all really dumb, right?_

The subject had been kind of a guilty taboo for him, as it always and still had given him guilty thoughts and even the occasional nightmare. Sjin decided on unclear thoughts about Sips and the decision of his leaving, and often pushed them aside when they sprung up. So, like previous endeavors, he pushed the subject to the back of his mind and averted his gaze back to the gifts in front of him.

Sjin leafed through the 'happy 12th birthday' cards with the numbers crossed out, as they were obviously inaccurate and made for 10 year old girls. Now that he thought about it, he was having certain questioning thoughts about of all the cards available, why would they choose… Oh well. Most of the cards had short little notes in them, mostly from the girls like Lomadia, Minty, and Nilesy, other than a few select cards which had crude drawings (cough*Rythian*cough) on them. With a cross between a sigh and a chuckle, Sjin set the cards aside and picked up the only wrapped gift he had received- from Xeph. A wave of uncertainty passed through him as he realized Xephos was the only one who had gotten him a physical something- he hoped that Xeph wasn't trying to say anything indirectly…

A shudder passed through him at the thought. He shook his head – that was the least of what he needed right then, to be honest. And, with an 'eager-enough-to-look-hungry' glance, Sjin unwrapped the paper so neatly packaged around the present – he would feel guilty if the wrapping was torn up and ruined.

And, after delicately removing the wrapping, he gasped in surprise at what was underneath. The shiny new machines shone the dazzling sunlight, and Sjin felt his heart fill with the excitement of a young child as he wrapped his arms around it – careful of the small red bows on top. Xeph had gotten him brand new Planters and Harvesters! A high-pitched giggle escaped Sjin's lips, and he thought he would explode. With another shot of glee, he realized it had come with multiple upgrade tomes so he could adjust it to the size of the plantations that he worked on.

Sjin ran inside and placed the new gifts down carefully – he had wanted auto farming supplies for a very long time, but had never gotten around to build them. All he had to do was craft and attach a couple of universal cables, and he could automate farming as easy as that!

Sjin practically skipped back outside to gather all of the letters, and brought them back inside; setting them upright on the mantle so he could glance at them on rainy day. He knew for a fact that they would light him up.

With a happy sigh, he took one last look at the letters and gifts surrounding his mantle – it reminded him of Christmas with a sudden pang, and in a moment of drunk-like happiness, he started to hum 'I believe in a thing called love'. His soft humming filled the silent farmhouse with a kind of relief, and he walked out back through the door to do some touching up on some of the crops around the farm – not because it needed to be done, but because it calmed him, and he quite enjoyed it.

Bundles of flowers, wheat, and various types of starches and fruits filled his pack quickly, and after replanting and watering all of them with care, he took a rest near a shady tree.

"Touching youu, ooooooooooooooh!" Sjin screeched gleefully, the audacity of his off-pitch singing almost deafeningly impossible. "Touching mee-"He was suddenly cut off by a small giggle from behind. With a flinch, he whipped around towards the small black haired figure grinning mockingly at him.

"N-Nano!" Sjin exclaimed, a light pink dusting his cheeks as he stood up quickly and brushed of his knees. He cleared his throat and giggled a little. "How, uh… Exactly how long have you been, uhm-"

"Long enough," She laughed and stepped closer, an almost strange shy aura coming off of her. Sjin didn't really think much of it, and stepped closer to meet her. "Anyway, happy birthday, man!" She greeted with a wide smile on her face.

"Thank you!" He replied and glanced over the farm with admiration, in a similar dreamlike state to that of that morning. "Goodness, it's so pretty out today,"

"Just like you to say something like that," She mumbled under her breath, and Sjin almost didn't catch it.

"Hhm?" He inquired, absently turning back to her. She shook her head quickly and divided her attention to the hands behind her back.

"So, I uh," She started, and trailed off as soon as she began. She brought out a small gift from behind her, with a small rose on top of it. "I got you this, for your birthday," She mumbled, her smile dropping a little and a blush covering her cheeks. "It isn't much, I just thought-"

"I'm flattered!" Sjin exclaimed, as oblivious as ever. He lifted the small thing from her grasp, and took the rose taped on top. He ran it under his nose, and breathed in the scent with an appreciative sigh. "It's really pretty," He murmured thoughtfully, and slipped it into his dungaree pocket.

"It is," She agreed softly. Sjin smiled as he began to unravel her gift. It revealed a purple painted watering can, shiny and new. The shade of purple nearly matched the shade of taint crawling up her arms, as well.

"Ah! Is this new in the pack?" He asked with a surprised grin, and she nodded proudly.

"Yup! It makes crop growing exceed ten percent faster! Basically like bone meal in a can!" She informed proudly, and walked over to the nearest crop bed. Sjin followed her, anticipation making his limbs almost ache. She held the can over his crops tenderly, and they responded almost immediately. Leaves and stems grew and bloomed in an almost magic-like manner, and Sjin was absolutely awestruck.

"Awh!" He murmured in a hushed tone. She giggled again. "That's so cool, here – let me try!" He urged, and she happily handed it over to him. The same thing happened; Plants and crops sprung to life and grew up from the ground almost magically. Sjin set the watering can down on the frame around the small plantation, and placed his hands lightly on his hips. "Wow, Nano. Thanks so much!"

She didn't respond immediately. "Well," She started, and Sjin gave her an inquisitive look as her cheeks tinted with a light pink. "There's one more thing I got you," She murmured softly, and Sjin looked down at her, her empty hands, and then around the farm with a confused glance.

"What? I… I don't see anything else here," He started questioningly. Nano looked at him frustratedly until he met her gaze again, and when he finally did, she took a frighteningly close step towards him. "I-

Sjin felt small hands reach up and pull the collar of his white shirt down, forcing him to crash lips with the dainty pair waiting below. "mMph!" He grunted with surprise as she kissed him, the nervousness and doubtful regret obvious by her body language. His eyes opened wide and he reluctantly shut them tight. Sjin quickly began to panic.

_I.. I- what do I do?! I'm flattered, but I don't-_

A thick, dull _CRACK _filled the air with a sickening _thud._

Sjin tore away from Nano's lips as she did, both of them nervously glancing towards the area where the sound came from. Sjin didn't notice how red her cheeks were, as his were probably the same embarrassing shade.

Without a single exchanged word between the two, they both quickly dashed off to the scene, near the front of Sjin's house. They slowed to a trot and looked around for the source, but found nothing.

But there, Sjin suddenly spotted, was… Some sort of wooden figure. He wearily approached it, kneeling down before examining it closely. It was shattered in two main pieces, apart from the small splinters that littered the surrounding ground. When put together, the two shapes of wood formed a heart – and there was something engraved in it.

As Sjin read the sloppily engraved words, '_To the biggest babby, the finest Sips co. birthday present', _His eyes widened in a sort of horror as only one word came to mind.

_"__Sips…"_


	4. Chapter 4 - Retreat

He ran.

Sips ran as fast and as far as his shorter-than-average legs could carry him. He ran away from the farm, away from the lands surrounding it, away from him; from Sjin. Even as all of his valiant work effort on his present was wasted, none of it meant a thing as lush green whisked by underneath his heavy feet. The only thing going through his head was the sight that greeted him to the farm.

Sips shook his head rapidly to try and shake off the image, but it didn't help as reluctant tears started forming in his eyes. He stubbornly rubbed a sweaty forearm across his face in attempt to wipe them away, but it had only made it worse. Loud sniffles were the only sound that accompanied the hush of the leaves and grass underneath him, and he began to wonder if this was another dream. He disappointingly decided against the idea as he reached to pinch his wrist purple- Now all he was left with was the pre stage of an ugly bruise.

As soon as he safely made it into the safety of tree coverage, Sips paused and casted a glance to the surrounding area. There was no one in sight, luckily enough, and he shut his eyes in attempt to lower his heart rate. Adrenaline pumped through his veins and his thundering heart beat hammered the back of his head, but his only feasible option was to shake it off. With small insignificant 'bloop', Sips activated his flying ring.

It took him quickly zooming through the forest, a little less than nimbly dodging any intruding branches blocking the way. And, once he had gotten far enough away, he lifted himself into a higher elevation with a quick flick of his wrist. Just as he went shooting upwards, however, a long branch reached out and snagged the silky fabric from his space suit away and leaving a scarily large gash in his arm.

Sips ungracefully tumbled back down through the canopy of leaves as the extra branches and sharp objects marked him up, and he lifted a hand to his face where the second large gash lay. Dark scarlet blood began to well up and out of the wound as fresh tears mixed with the liquid, and Sips cursed under his breath as he found his arm's situation was much worse.

Sips put a hand over his mouth as the overwhelming urge to shout in frustration took him over. Instead, more soft curses trailed from his mouth and he shakily placed a dirty hand over the blood smeared slash. It was definitely deeper than the one across his left cheek, and a new feeling of worry began to bubble up as he got unsteadily to his feet. With a sigh and a defeated look to the sky, he carefully lifted himself upwards again towards the sky, leaving nothing but a snag of space suit and a little blood behind.

It seemed like ages had gone by as Sips flew back to the compound, and the numb but searing pain in his arm only got worse as time went on. It wasn't long until he had decided to stay strong and hold back the tears for the long flight home. Before long, however, he found himself nearly crash landing onto the soft wood floors of the compound. He glanced around the empty place, weary of any sign of threat. Sips knew that the sun would set soon and that he had to get inside.

With a heaving cough and a sigh of utter defeat, he dragged himself inside the main building. The silence filled every gap of innocent silence as he hauled himself to the med floor, remembering with a grimace the sound that the elevator made when he shoved the mining laser in his pack up the music system's speaker. That shut the mocking tune up.

Once on the med floor (thank the lord Sjin forced that into the blueprint), Sips lazily and messily wrapped the gaping wound on his arm. He cursed and spat as the pain worsened with the poorly done sterilizing process, and for the millionth time, Sips wished the Sjin was there. It took him longer than average to patch up his arm and the less problematic face wound, but when all was done he left everything out and marched back up to the top floor, the penthouse.

Sips stumbled into sight of his room, messy and in pieces, with a whimpering sigh. And, as he collapsed onto the bed, everything quickly began to fall apart.

The guilt, sadness, loneliness, and worst of all, heart break, all began to penetrate every nook and cranny that showed the slightest bit of vulnerability in his body. Sips caught his breath as the feeling conquered him, and he abruptly burst into broken and unholy sobs. He wept, bawled, yelled, sobbed, and whimpered into damp bed sheets, clutching the only thing left of him – Sjin's old pillow. It still had his scent, Sips absent mindedly realized, and sat in the darkening room for the last hours of daylight as his last hopes wasted away into nothingness.

After all of his tears were basically gone and poured into the bed sheets he sat in, Sips decided with a lifeless moan that if he wanted to keep his sanity, he had better stay awake that night. He sat up, exhausted from the hours previous, and picked himself up and out of bed. _Well,_ he thought passively, _if I'm going to stay awake, I might as well try and relax the best I can. _

Sips made his way to the mini-fridge next the hot tub near the pent house floor, and grabbed a couple beers. They were new, apparently some kind of gift from… what did the mask guy say? Some Scottish buster on a floating bar? He must've been drunk back then.

As he stripped down to nothing but swim trunks, sips slid into the boiling hot water of the Jacuzzi , the loud fizzing and bubbling noises calming him. He drowned himself in the soft humming noise as downed a beer, humming a satisfied tune. "Ugh, that hits the spot," He sighed, sinking into the water a little more as he spread both arms out and around the rim of the small pool. He reached over to grip another beer, grinning slightly to himself.

"Mm, strong stuff…," He mumbled; his wavering voice was already beginning to slur, and the loud bubble of the Jacuzzi fell to a faint buzz as the extremely strong alcohol blurred Sips' shrouded mind. Somewhere in the back of his now inaccessible brain, he knew things would start to fall downhill from here. But drinking usually solved all of his problems, right…? Or was it the opposite? He couldn't really remember anymore.

Sips felt his eyes start to droop, the guilt and defeat of earlier settling a little more as he cast an attracted glance towards what seemed like his umpteenth bottle. He drunkenly reached out towards it, closing his eyes as the fresh liquid burned his throat with thirsty violence. He grimaced and flinched as a perfectly shaped silhouette formed in his head, one that made him want to puke. The mocking image danced on the backs of his eye lids, two people… One a friend, one an enemy… Finding each other closer and more intimate than Sips ever wanted to see them.

The image burned in his mind, as he absent mindedly left another emptied bottle floating in the Jacuzzi.

_Maybe just one more… _He decided, but what haunted him that night was nearly unbearable.


	5. Chapter 5 - Return

The panic that filled Sjin's body was an overwhelming tide during a full moon. He felt his grip on the shattered present tighten, and stood from his crouched position. Nano stood overwhelmingly confused and anxious behind him, peering behind his shoulder to attempt to get view of the cause of his sudden mood change.

As she stepped into full view of what was wrapped tightly in the farmer's hands, she draped a hand over her mouth.  
"Sjin…" She murmured behind a shaky hand. "I'm so sorry…"

He shook his head, keeping his head bowed towards the gift in his hands. He felt tears brimming in his eyes, but bit his tongue in an attempt to hold them back. He coughed lowly and wiped at his eyes, raising his gaze to meet Nano's. "I'm so sorry," He then returned, and she understood why. "I've got to go fix this…" He murmured softly, and she nodded.

"I understand… Is there anything I can do to help?" She offered softly, giving him an embarrassed but sympathetic look. He stood waiting before he answering, biting his lip.

"I'll probably have to pack a bag – the journey from the farm to the compound is quite a ways away… Could you perhaps gather some of the food in my crops that are ready for harvesting? That would be a huge help, Nano." He suggested sheepishly, slipping the two pieces of log into his pack carefully.

She nodded solemnly and headed off towards the back of his garden, where most of his crops lay. Sjin, with a long and slow sigh, sniffed and shook his head. He ran inside to fetch a couple pairs of clothes as well as some other necessities – there was no telling how long he would be away.

Through piles of old chests, Sjin somehow managed to find his old flying ring and space suit. As the soft cream and orange fabric slipped through his fingers, a wave of nostalgia hit him. He pulled off his worn down denim overalls with a pang of uncertainty, and with that, fit the suit over his head and around his arms. He shifted around comfortably in the old feeling, a now somewhat confident half smile making its way to his lips.

He slipped his old Swiftwolf's rending gale over a calloused finger, adjusting it slightly. With a small flex of the wrist, Sjin hovered above the soft mahogany floors of the basement. He giggled, and then shook his head with the sudden reminder of the task at hand. There were only a couple more items to pack, and then he would be on his way.

He caught Nano waiting for him at his front door, gazing up at the clouds of the now midday sky. She held a bag filled with plenty of foodstuffs, and handed it to him with a soft grin in realization for what he was wearing. He grinned timidly, and took the sack of goods with a small 'thank you'. Once everything loaded, however, he set his pack down. Nano cast a confused glance at him, before squeaking a little as thin but firm arms enveloped her in a warm embrace.

She closed her eyes gently, wrapping her small arms around the bearded man.

He pulled away slowly from the hug, and cast thoughtful and sparkling eyes at her. "I'm so sorry, Nano," He started, but she shook her head with a soft smile.

"I understand. Thank you, though, and be sure to keep in touch." She confirmed quietly. With a giggle, she added, "You smell like dirt – and not the natural kind." He responded with a sly grin.

"That's old Sipsy for ya," he chuckled softly, and then softened his gaze once more. "I'm not sure how long I'll be gone, but I can trust you'll be a magnificent host to my farm?" His smile grew as she rolled her eyes.

"Maybe, maybe not," She replied teasingly, and then gave one more quick hug to the farmer before watching him nod in a last farewell. Sjin picked up his stuff, slung it around his back, and activated the flying ring that was now secure around his finger. She showed a small wave of departure as he levitated from the ground, and headed for the nearby forest – if he could remember right, Sips Co. was due north.

A fair half hour had gone by as Sjin flew across the tops of small forest trees and above his mental route towards his old home. Occasionally he would dip a hand down to brush the tops of leaves, trying to enjoy the trip down memory lane best he could, but then slowed to an eventual stop as something caught the corner of his eye.

He made a small swerve towards the fragment of white whipping around in the teasing breeze, squinting his eyes for a better view. He cautiously approached it, the fragment revealing to be what looked like a decent sized piece of cloth.

Sjin decided that the fabric was safe to examine, and proceed to untangle it from its predicament with the stubborn branch. And, as he got a closer look, the edge of the cloth faded abruptly into a pastel blue, and…there were blood stains. Deep blood stains. Sjin furrowed his brow with confusion of what was in his hands, until understanding hit him like a wall of spikes.

Sjin's stomach dropped slightly, and he gripped the rag tightly in his fist. His apprehension reaction was a little too slow for his own liking, and with a twinge of urgency, he clenched the ring around his finger and took off full speed towards the large body of water than separated this small woods from a place he once called home.

It was sunset when Sjin grew close to the factory. Even though pressing thoughts bombarded his mind, he couldn't help but to wonder what the compound had become. Was Sips still occupying the new tower he built nearly a year ago? Where had he found enough lava to keep the geothermal facility running? Was the Tower of Power still active? Maybe he had built it up to twice its original size since he left. Maybe he found another volcano for unlimited thermal power. He wondered how many new buildings were there, who had built them, what they looked like, what they were made of… And most of all, Sjin wondered if he found any new employees. Perhaps he had found Guy's relatives and hired them at newly needed reception desks, not that guy had ever been _that_ much of a useful employee... Maybe he didn't need sheep. Maybe he'd automated the whole system, and-

Sjin stopped dead in his tracks.

It was horrendous.

Rather, horrendous was an understatement. Buildings were now longer whole. Bits and pieces of decaying cobblestone and marble were ungracefully torn away from their home by probable endermen with no better hobby. Moss and nitre crawled its way up almost every wall. Their – Sips' once spiffy, clean, and functional compound had been transformed into a make-shift jungle town.

A wispy film of dirt and moss floated atop the murky waters of the compound's pool. The geothermal facility's long, sturdy, and lava filled tanks were smashed and empty, the spilled lava long burnt its way through the floor. Missing doors and overgrown weeds snaked up the side and top of the interview chamber. Most every building that stood ground in the complex was unrecognizable at anyone's glance, and Sjin felt his heart drop.

He slowly lowered himself down to the floor, and let his eyes wander every broken detail of the scene with a ghastly expression. The birch wooden floor seemed almost soft, most likely from rain and decay over the years. Sjin walked through the buildings with a longing touch, running his hands along every fracture in memory; every sweet remembrance that once was now rotting away with the ruined state of his home.

Sjin came to a slow stop infront of the towering figure that seemed to stand soaring amongst its deserted surroundings. His eyes scanned the towering building bottom to top, absorbing in every feature of the marble and stone building, painted pure white and gray and against an otherwise dull backdrop. An odd sensation of fear held him back from opening the door to the factory, and his fingers quivered as they brushed the cool metal handle. Sure enough, however, the door easily swung open, and his heavy dread was a broken anvil. Night had now grown steadily across the landscape.

It wasn't as bad as Sjin had first expected, waiting to meet a room in the same states as the majority of the compound. However, it seemed Sips had gone to some length in the way that he decided against leaving the last building with hope in ruins.

There was no way of telling which floor Sips had made his retreat to, or even if he was at the tower in the first place. Sjin decided to stay away from thinking about it too much; the idea of Sips being gone or lost and hurt terrified him. He made his way up floor by floor in pursuit of his CEO and boss, worry filling him with each vacant floor that passed.

Until, that is, until he reached the med bay. Gauze and ointment were sporadically tossed lazily along the tiled floor, and from the fresh smell of blood, Sjin felt a sickening feeling knead his stomach that Sips hadn't taken care very good care of himself.

_How long had he been living like this…?_

He did his best to fit what he could of the remaining functional supplies into his pack, case he ran into the man someplace else and he was in need of help. Sjin wearily boarded the elevator again, noticing with another grimace the fist-size dent in the speaker system. He wondered how long that had been there.

With anticipation forcing sweat down Sjin's back, the last floor of the tower dinged and the elevator doors opened with a horrendously sluggish pace. The pent house was the last place to check.

Bile rose in his throat. His heart thudded abnormally in his head and he felt like it would explode. His knees buckled and tears threatened to spill from his eyes. His pack dropped to floor. An overwhelming smell of strong beer flooded his nose, and Sjin nearly gagged over the scent.

There were clothes _everywhere_. Trash and empty food canisters and packages littered the floor worse than the streets of New York. The room had turned from a polished and refurbished pent house to a pig sty with black out curtains blocking any light that may have crept through on a bright day. It was an absolute mess of accumulated anxiety and isolation. It was disheartening; worrying; even depressing.

But Sjin's eyes were drawn to the back of the room, however, and the figure in the fizzed out Jacuzzi was what alarmed him the most.

"_Oh, Sips…"_ The words fell from his mouth as he swallowed the rising bile in his throat. His feet stumbled across the occupied floor as his thoughts consumed him. Shaky and reluctant thoughts raced through his mind all within the span of a step or two, and by the time he had reached Sips' still silhouette, Sjin had about weathered himself down to nothing but pure and naked anxiety.

Sips had sprawled himself out in the hot tub, top of his stomach and below soaking in still steaming water even at the late hour. Probably about 8-10 bottles of beer floated about the top of the water, emptied and leaving an unpleasant stench in its wake. Both of his arms were supporting his head above water and across the tub's rim. With a startling flinch, Sjin noticed the lazily patched up gash on his arm. A faint sign of blood showed that it definitely wasn't sterilized or wrapped correctly, which worried Sjin that it might become infected. It was obvious Sips had hurt himself in an attempt to make an escape from the farm earlier that day. He adsorbed Sips' other features in a fleeting moment of hope.

His closed eyes and still features resembled him as if merely sleeping, and Sjin realized this was the first time he had seen his boss in a near year… And to seem him in a state like this. Hair tussled, eyes closed and drooping in weariness, and anything but a smile adorning his lips, he was clearly out like a light – and not in a good way. Sjin stood waiting, stalling the fate he would soon discover.

A couple of long moments passed between Sjin's shocked state of paralysis and his slow reach for Sips' wrists. His own heartbeat thudded against his own skull, and Sjin found it hard to try and focus in on the other's pulse, not his raging own. He found the soft part of Sips' wrist with a trembling hand, waiting with terrified anticipation whether he would get response. He gently pressed against the skin, feeling hope sink as time passed without a signal of life… Until a very weak thump, thump… thump, thump… sounded back.

Sjin wanted to cry out in relief. He bowed his head over the pale grey skin, and felt himself brush the soft skin with his thumb. He shook off his hysterical state slightly, taking the medical wrap out of his backpack. First things first – if he was going to fix Sips' wound, then he may as well have kept the CEO in his semi-comfortable state. He stood up and began to drain the water from the tub. He slipped off his shoes once the water was filtered away, and stepped inside the empty tub to get closer to his friend.

With a soft sigh, Sjin reached forward to unravel the unrealistically tight wrapping bound around Sips' bicep, and let out a gentle gasp at the deep wound that scored through his pale and grey skin.

A furrow between his brow and a rubbing alcohol soaked cloth in hand, Sjin lightly wiped down the dried blood and dirt gathered into the cut. As soon as the rag hit flesh, however, Sips' body expelled a short but effective tremor and a low key groan unconsciously sounded from the back of his throat. Sjin bit his lip in concentration, careful not to make situation worse with his patient's now more frequent struggles.

Slowly and painfully, Sjin finally managed to cleanly wrap up Sips' major injury. As for the minor scratch on his face, Sjin peeled off the bandage there with more ease. He wiped off the dirt and blood from his cheek in the same manner, and set down the supplies on the outer rim of the tub, leave the band aid in his hands. He leaned closer for a good look at the gash.

A fleeting glance upwards made Sjin realize how close their faces were. Instead of pulling away in embarrassment, however, Sjin found himself… relishing the feeling. It made his heart pump fast, but not a terrified beat. An… anticipating beat. Sjin lifted a hand to brush over the gash on Sips' check as softly as he could, the soft and cleaned skin passing easily underneath his thumb. He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against his boss', savoring the rarity in being able to be this close to him.

The temptation of a kiss washed over Sjin, and the startling invitation sent his mind reeling. Why was he suddenly feeling like this? It didn't make much since to the farmer – He knew he never had this kind of affection towards Sips. I mean, sure, they had been best friends and it hurt him so, so, much to be apart from him… But, that couldn't mean anything weird.

Sjin reluctantly pulled away, and placed the mahogany colored band aid over his boss' cheek. As He let go of the greyish coloured face, it lolled backwards in a limp unconsciousness before Sjin managed to catch it at the last second. He sighed softly, and noticed that Sips was probably dry enough to get in bed. Sjin ran over to a closet area where only a few clean shirts remained, and picked out the softest one he could find. He slipped it over Sips' laid-back head (now supported slightly with a small roll of cloth that had been discarded on the floor lord knows how long ago).

With less than as much ease that was wished for, Sjin managed to somehow lift his boss carefully from his half-sitting half-laying-down position and into his own arms. It was only through a miraculous shot of adrenaline and fear of dropping the shorter man that Sjin was able to carry him to the bed. The… double bed.

_After all of these years… He still keeps our beds together?_ Sjin thought to himself softly, rearranging the sheets swiftly after setting Sips down on the messy duvet. Soon enough, Sjin made room to situate Sips comfortably underneath the covers. He pulled the still fluffy comforter over Sips' shoulders and relished the semi peaceful look on his face.

Sjin turned out the lights, and then proceeded to feel his way to the opposite side of the bed – his bed. The bed's sheets slid in a cool roll of warmth and enveloped him in reassuring thoughts. He twisted onto his side, moved his eyes slowly across the barely visible features of Sips' face, and reached out to place a small kiss on his forehead. He resisted the urge to giggle as Sips grumbled something inaudible and incoherently.

In this moment of pure bliss, it seemed that it was just like one of the old days. As soon as Sjin's eyes closed and sent him into a peaceful sleep, Sips would be shoving him out of bed in the early hours of day complaining that he wasn't already out working. Sjin would reply with a statement of excuse, blaming Sips for being the one who usually sleeps in, and Sips would roll his eyes and offer an empty threat. They'd continue work on the compound for the day; tease the others that happened to be active in their region about being Cheaty Petes, and make innuendos until the sun set.

These happy memories are what calmed Sjin's previously panicked and restless mind…

And before long, Sjin fell asleep to the nostalgic feeling of being with Sips.

That is, until a shout awoke him.


End file.
